The present invention relates to wound dressings.
Certain wound dressings which are now widely used in hospitals and elsewhere consist of thin elastomeric films coated with adhesive. These composites are difficult to deliver to the patient, due to the flimsy nature of the film and the presence of the adhesive.
Several dressings have been disclosed in attempts to make it more easy to deliver such products. U.S. Pat. No. 4,513,739 describes a system where an adhesive coated film dressing has a means attached to the edges of the film to retard the release of the dressing from the protective backing, or release liner, which covers the adhesive. This allows the release liner to be partially removed for bandage application while remaining attached for handling purposes.
Another dressing utilizing this same general approach is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,004. In this disclosure, the dressing is perforated at the margins. The release liner is attached firmly to the perforated margin, and releasably to the remainder of the dressing. In use, the liner is partially removed for application of the dressing, and then the perforated portions are removed by pulling harder on the liner.